Step arrangement design and nanostructure self-organization on Si(111) surfaces by patterning-assisted control

We propose a new approach to self-organize atomic step arrangement on Si(111) surfaces on a wafer scale. Steps originating in substrate misorientation are rearranged on surfaces patterned with small hole arrays during high temperature annealing in an ultra high vacuum. After further annealing, the holes are completely filled, and only ordered step bands are left on the surface. Inside the unfilled holes appear trimmed nanostructures, reflecting the dependence of step behaviors on the misorientation direction. The present technique is promising for large scale control of step-initiated nanofabrication as well as for improving the conventional Si process in which an atomically flat surface is increasingly required.